Traffic on a hazy evening in Fresno, California. A new study estimates that about 50,000 lives could be saved each year if the United States eliminated the tiny pollutant particles released from the exhaust pipes of cars and trucks, among other sources.
Gary Kazanjian / AP
hide captions
switch captions
Gary Kazanjian / AP
Traffic on a hazy evening in Fresno, California. A new study estimates that about 50,000 lives could be saved each year if the United States eliminated the tiny pollutant particles released from the exhaust pipes of cars and trucks, among other sources.
Gary Kazanjian / AP
Tens of thousands of lives would be saved each year in the United States if widespread air pollution from burning fossil fuels could be eliminated, according to a new study. Research highlights the huge health benefits of staying away from coal, oil and gasoline.
Using data from the Environmental Protection Agency, researchers at the University of Wisconsin-Madison estimate that about 50,000 premature deaths would be avoided every year if microscopic air pollutants called particulates were removed. quit in the US.
“This [particles] Jonathan Patz, professor at the University of Wisconsin-Madison and one of the authors of research. “They are the worst pollutants when it comes to mortality and hospitalizations.”
Early deaths and hospitalizations are also extremely costly to the US economy. The study estimates that eliminating such air pollution would save about $600 billion per year.
Burning fossil fuels is the main source of fine particulate pollution in the US it can instantly save lives by cutting pollution.
Fine particles, also known as PM2.5 by scientists and regulators, are pollutants produced by fossil fuel combustion, wildfires, and a number of industrial processes. they are about 1/30th the width of a human hairwhich means they can burrow deep inside the lungs on their own.
Worldwide, it is estimated that millions of people die prematurely each year from outdoor air pollution, World Health Organization estimates. More than 1 million deaths globally from fine particulate air pollution could be avoided in just one year if fossil fuel burning was eliminated, according to a new study. separate study published last year.
Air quality in many US countries is better than the global average. But residual pollution is still deadly, especially for those live in hot spots next to factories, power plants and highways. That includes a disproportionate amount neighborhoods shaped by discrimination in government-funded housing.
“Even with the Clean Air Act in the United States, we still have more than 100,000 Americans die prematurely,” said Patz, who has studied the link between climate change and human health for decades. air pollution every year. “It’s a significant health hazard.”
Not all fuels are equally dangerous. For example, coal emits extremely strong pollution. Yet America is burning far less coal than it did a decade ago. That has helped make the electricity sector a bit cleaner, although the study still attributes around 9,000 premature deaths a year to pollution from power plants. Research shows that cars, trucks and other vehicles that run on fossil fuels cause around 11,000 premature deaths.
